Evergreen Memorial Historic Cemetery

Augustus Boggs built the Riverside County Hospital located on Magnolia Avenue

Augustus Washington Boggs

Augustus Boggs, or Gus as he preferred to be called, was considered Riverside’s first architect, arriving in 1880. He left Nashville where he was educated in architecture, and worked in Los Angeles with his partner Mr. Ripley. Boggs started out his career in Riverside by designing, with Ripley, a number of homes in 1880.
Noted for his honesty and hard work, Boggs operated both as an architect and a contractor. He built many homes and churches and was a key figure in the failed dreams of Emil Rosenthal for Mount Rubidoux. Emil Rosenthal bought 10 acres of land at the foot of Mount Rubidoux at the height of the 1884-1887 boom years. He and his partner, John T. Jarvis, a real estate businessman, subdivided the property and Rosenthal commissioned Boggs to build a house on a portion. The balance of the property was to be a 240-room grand hotel, called The Rubidoux, overlooking the balance of the subdivision. When the economy crashed, Rosenthal sold his house plans and seven lots to Jarvis and left Riverside. Jarvis completed the house and today it can be seen near Evergreen at 4492 12th Street.
Boggs also worked with architect and engineer George Chaffey completing several projects for him in Ontario. He designed the Riverside County Hospital, the Sherman Institute working for Frank Miller, the Cornelius Rumsey house, the Sweat House, and the Hays-Pattee house-originally built for the notorious embezzler Tom Hays, who cause the collapse of the Orange Growers Bank.